Frightening Flashbacks Haunt Mercedes as Toto Wolff Weighs in on Lewis Hamilton- George Russell Rivalry

Mercedes has been on top of their game for the last decade. And, since Toto Wolff took over as manager, the team’s glory never really left until last year. But with the Austrian and the pairing of Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, on the wheel, it is certain it won’t remain far from Brackley for a long time.

Over the years, Toto Wolff has dealt with several challenges, one of which was probably as difficult as last year: dealing with the rivalry between teammates Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton. And, despite winning the championships during the Nico-Lewis era, he would not want to face that challenge again under his leadership.

However, as the boss, there is only so much he can do, and the arrival of new blood, George Russell, has sparked a rivalry between the two. Acknowledging the budding tensions between, Hamilton and Russell, Toto Wolff said to Auto, Motor und Sport, as quoted by GPBlog.com, “We accept that there can be rivalry between our drivers, but this rivalry should never turn into conflict that could harm the team. I would never allow that and I have never allowed that.”

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The statement comes as a shock to many, as there has been nothing but praise from both garages. And while the duo hold respect for each other and share great chemistry, it would only be natural to have incidents amongst themselves.

George Russell on his rivalry with Lewis Hamilton

Lewis and George were on the same bandwagon in the 2022 season, one posing them challenges at every turn and straight. But somehow, things remained good on their end, and that helped the team focus on developing the car, rather than dealing with them fighting.

The lack of fierce rivalry as seen before at Mercedes was prevented as George clarified, “I mean naturally if you are fighting for 1-2s there will be a slightly different dynamic and that’s only natural. But I think the thing we have going for us is the fact that we are at very different stages of our careers.”

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Now, given that there might be a spark here and there between the two, Toto would want to prevent it from causing a blast. And if the team manages to keep them from crashing into each other, that would be a good win for them off-track.